Once We Met Read online

  “Oh, I didn’t . . .” She trailed off. Having him take her would be better than trying to catch an Uber. “I mean, unless you still have bikes at the Sports Shack.”

  “Actually, that’s the one place Brenda Harrison didn’t touch. Everything is still in there. So if you really feel like riding a bike into Brandywood, you’re in luck.”

  She grimaced. “To be honest, I haven’t ridden a bike in about ten years. At least, not one that wasn’t stationary.”

  “Well, you know what they say about riding a bike.” Dan shrugged. “It’s pretty much used as the prime example of hopping back on and doing something again.”

  Her lips pursed in a smile. “Is this your way of getting out of taking me into town?”

  He crossed his arms. “Hell, no. I’ll go with you. Any breakfast my sister makes is going to be better than the cereal I have sitting in the cupboard. Besides, I want to see if she can cater some breakfasts here next week when your guests arrive, since I’m technically supposed to be a B&B. But I have dibs on the bike with the basket in the front.”

  She cocked her head to the side. Was he being serious?

  Within minutes, Avery found herself whizzing down the streets of Brandywood, heading away from the lake and toward the town. Dan had been right: getting on the bike had been easy. At first, she’d worried she wouldn’t know how to get on and off—or even balance—again. But it came back to her quickly.

  With the cool air of morning breezing against her face, Avery fought the urge to close her eyes as she coasted down a hill. Her gaze focused on Dan, who rode in front of her, and she threw her head back with a laugh. He really had taken the bike with the basket, and each time she saw it bobbing in front of him, she couldn’t help wondering if he’d done it just to make her smile.

  The Dan she’d known had a surprisingly playful and gentle side—something that didn’t seem to fit with his height and mountain man beard. He had to be at least six-two or three. He heard her laughter and turned back with a wry grin, then honked twice on the old-fashioned bike horn.

  She pedaled harder to catch up to him. “You’re quite the vision on that bike. You look like you belong in an old musical—like Oklahoma or something.”

  “Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhklahoma, where the wind blows . . .” Dan gave a deep, throaty laugh. “I forgot my bonnet at home.”

  She guffawed. He knew the music. Of course he did. And he had a good singing voice. “You’re into musicals?”

  “Good God, no. I could lose my reputation with gossip like that.” Dan wrinkled his nose. “But I grew up watching all of them with my sister, especially when my mom wanted me to help with her.”

  Mom.

  Crap. She’d forgotten to call her own mom last night.

  Maybe it was better. She had no idea how to tell Mom about the mess at the Serendipity. But she’d have to think of something sooner rather than later. Mom was coming up from Tampa in a handful of days—before Bryan. She wouldn’t be happy to find out about the Serendipity. Or to see Dan again.

  She’d worked so hard to get back to a good relationship with Mom. Dan being in the picture in any way was a threat to that. For the first time since she had been in her early teens, Mom had moved away from being overbearing and untrusting to actually being someone Avery could talk to. Of course, she couldn’t go to Mom with problems about men or tell her about some of the more irresponsible things she’d done, but that’s what Erika was for anyway.

  But Mom liked Bryan. Or at least, she liked who Avery was as a result of dating Bryan. For so long, Avery had dreamt of having that sort of relationship with Mom—something more akin to a friendship. One where Avery finally had approval.

  Tires crunched near them, and she glanced over her shoulder as a truck took a wide berth as it zoomed around. One thing she’d always loved about Brandywood was how polite people were here. She couldn’t imagine riding a bike in some of the places she’d lived, where people actively resented cyclists—Bryan among them.

  They turned their bikes onto Main Street, and Avery’s heart lightened. She loved this town so much. From the old historic-looking stone buildings on Main to iconic buildings like Yardley’s Pub and Bunny’s Café, which had been there since before she was born.

  For a couple of summers, her parents had been forced to come early, and she’d gotten to see the way Brandywood did Fourth of July, which was amazing. From parades to fireworks over the lake to hot-dog and apple-pie-eating contests, the whole thing just smacked of small-town Americana. And she loved every bit.

  Brandywood had always been the one thing everyone in her family could agree on. Even after her parents had divorced, they each had continued coming here. It meant two weeks in Brandywood for Avery for a few years. Once Dad and Tina had gotten married and they’d had the twins, Avery couldn’t help feeling like the odd member out of Dad’s new family. And she didn’t exactly fit in with twins twenty years younger than her. She’d started skipping lake week with her dad about seven years ago, and she wasn’t sure he even noticed.

  The worst part of it was that it was one of the few times of the year she ever got to be around her sisters. Did they miss seeing their big sister, or had they forgotten about her, too?

  She gripped the handlebars tighter, the scent of baking bread and freshly cut grass filling the air. Dan led her to the main parking lot at the far end of Main Street, and they jimmied the bikes onto the bike rack.

  As they started off, Avery hesitated. “Shouldn’t we lock them up?”

  Dan gave her a shrug. “It’s Brandywood. You can leave a bike there for a month, and no one will take it.”

  He’s not wrong.

  She could visualize the way Bryan’s eye would twitch at Dan’s blasé attitude toward it, though, and she held back a smile.

  Dan ran his hand through his hair, which had flattened from the bike helmet. “By the way, I have some bad news.”

  Her gaze traced the lit purple sign on a small local tarot place. “What’s that?” She wasn’t sure she wanted to hear it.

  “I haven’t found the key to the storage unit yet. The kid I have working for me was looking for it for about three hours and . . . nothing.”

  “You were a cop. Is there a way you can pick the lock?”

  Dan’s lips curled in a smile. “A cop, not a robber.” He shrugged. “Yeah, I can probably hire a locksmith. Or see if I can cut the lock off. I just don’t want to damage the door, or the storage facility won’t be happy.”

  “Maybe we can all go up there after breakfast. Erika and I could help you move some things.” She smiled as they slowed in front of the bakery, emblazoned with the sign Sweet Escapes. “I don’t think they had opened this place when I came last summer. Although, we had to cut the trip short. We only made it to town twice. Bryan got called back to take part in an important surgery.”

  That and the fact that most places they went, Bryan ended up looking for a grocery store with a good selection of organic foods and just did his own thing. On their first date, she’d thought he was so thoughtful to pick the restaurant and make a reservation, but it turned out to be one of the few restaurants in San Diego where he’d actually eat anything.

  “Your folks still come here for vacation, then?” Dan held the door open for her, and the sweet scent of cinnamon and chocolate floated out of the bakery.

  Before Avery could answer, a blond little boy called out, “Uncle Danny!” and came racing toward the door, his arms outstretched.

  Dan caught his nephew in a bear hug and swung him around, a wide grin on his face. “Colby. I didn’t expect to see you here this morning.” He set the boy down, then ruffled his hair.

  “He’s been waking up at four all week,” an equally blonde woman said, popping up from behind the counter. She wore a cream-colored apron with the bakery’s logo embroidered on the front, her hair tied up in a messy bun. “Jason has Blake this week, so I’ve been bringing Colby so he doesn’t wake his brother at the ass crack of dawn and Jason can get some sl
eep.”

  This must be Dan’s sister. Even though she didn’t look exactly like her brother, the repartee was there, just like Dan had with his brother the day before. Dan’s sister went back to adjusting a tray of cinnamon rolls behind the glass display case, and Dan squatted in front of Colby. “Why have you been getting up so early?”

  Colby shrugged. “I don’t know. I just wake up.” He tugged at Dan’s shirt. “Can you take me to the playground?”

  “Aw, I wish I could, bud. But I have to help this nice lady with a big project at Uncle Danny’s new place.” Dan squeezed Colby’s shoulder. “How about you guys come by this weekend? We can take the boat out on the lake. Maybe even do some tubing.”

  “Yeah! Can we, Mommy? Please?” Colby gave his mother a bright, hopeful look.

  Dan’s sister straightened again, then set both hands on the counter. She quirked a brow at Dan. “Maybe. I have to talk to Daddy. How about you go back to sorting those sugar packets you dumped out earlier? It’s going to get busy here soon, Colbs.”

  As Colby raced away once again, Dan’s sister came out from behind the counter, wiping her hands on her apron. “Next time, ask me before you put the idea in his head,” she hissed. She still wore a smile, though. “Now he’ll be asking me about it a hundred times.” She stopped near them, then held out her hand to Avery. “Hi, I’m Jen.”

  Avery couldn’t help liking Jen instantly. She seemed warm and welcoming but also down-to-earth. She shook Jen’s hand. “Avery Moretti. You have a beautiful place. It’s so cozy.”

  “Avery . . .” Jen ducked her chin, giving Dan a quick look. “Thanks, I think so, too. I’m lucky, really. And it’s nice to meet you.”

  Had Dan mentioned her to his sister years ago? Her reaction indicated that he had. But if that was the case, it was likely Jen wouldn’t end up being so welcoming after all.

  Dan cleared his throat. “Avery is getting married at the Serendipity in a couple of weeks. It turns out there was a mix-up and Ken Harrison didn’t put it on the books. She and her friend are staying there, but we don’t have a chef yet.”

  “Oh, you’re staying there?” Jen drew her head back, her eyes shocked. “Isn’t it completely empty?”

  “I slept in a sleeping bag last night,” Avery answered with a grimace, rubbing her shoulder.

  “Sounds miserable.” Jen moved back toward the counter. “As soon as Dan is operational, I’m planning on helping him with breakfasts and baked goods, but I didn’t think it would be this soon.”

  Dan followed his sister, leaving Avery to catch up to them slowly, feeling like the odd person out. “Yeah, I was actually going to ask you about that. I didn’t know if maybe you could try to cover breakfast for the rest of this week and next—until Avery’s reservation ends.”

  Jen hesitated. “Delivered?”

  “I could come pick it up.”

  Jen pulled a pad out from beside the register. “I could. What are you looking for—breads and pastries and fruit?”

  Dan glanced at Avery. “What do you think? What type of breakfast foods do you want for your guests?” He tugged a catering menu out from behind the counter as though he was familiar enough with the bakery to do so.

  “Yeah, that would be great,” Avery managed, flipping open the menu. “There’s so much to choose from.”

  “Would you want coffee and juice, too?” Jen asked, scribbling on her pad.

  As they continued talking, Avery looked from Dan back to Jen, and a strange apprehensive feeling rose in her chest. Wow, he’s being nice.

  She didn’t want to take that the wrong way. Dan had always been nice to her, really. But they’d never been very good at being just friends. From the get-go, their relationship had been a deep dive into emotions she’d never experienced. And it had been physical.

  Don’t think about that.

  He’s not being a friend to you right now. He’s being a business owner who’s in a tight spot.

  She twisted her engagement ring, pushing the diamond around her finger with her thumb. Was she being naïve to think she and Dan could have a friendly relationship? Sure, they’d hurt each other, but she felt strangely comfortable around him, even after all these years.

  But it had been so long ago. You’re not imagining the lightness you feel around him, though, are you?

  “Avery?” Dan’s voice cut into her thoughts.

  She jerked her chin up. “Sorry. I was lost in thought. What was that?”

  “What’re you having today?” Dan asked.

  She scanned the chalkboard menu behind Jen. “Are you open for customers yet?” There wasn’t anyone else there yet.

  “Absolutely.” Jen smiled again, putting away the notepad. “Normally I open at seven, but I’m handling the breakfast catering for the film crew in town, so I’ve pushed my hours back so that I open at eight. But that doesn’t include family.” She winked at Dan.

  Their relationship gave Avery a jealous stab in her gut. She’d always longed for siblings when she was growing up. Then when she’d finally gotten them, she was already in college. And as much as she tried to lavish Madeline and Vivienne with attention, they were more like nieces than sisters. She couldn’t hang out with them in an adult capacity.

  As Avery ordered a few oatmeals, fruit cups, and black coffees to go, her phone rang.

  Bryan.

  She’d never sent the text message she’d typed up, for fear of waking him. It had only been thirty minutes since then, which meant it was very early in San Diego. Had he slept at all?

  “Hey, babe.”

  “Avery, what the hell? Where have you been?” Bryan’s voice was loud in her ear. She pressed the button several times to lower the volume, giving Dan a quick glance. He appeared to be studying the catering menu his sister had given him. Had he heard Bryan?

  “I’m so sorry. I got your messages this morning, and I was going to text you back, but then I wasn’t sure if you were up, and I didn’t want to wake you.” She took out some money to cover her bill and put it on the counter, then slipped out the door.

  “I was one hundred percent awake. How in the hell did you expect me to sleep with you not answering the phone? And the main line to the Serendipity is out of service, by the way. I tried to call them.”

  “Yeah, I have no idea why I didn’t get any notifications until this morning. Service is randomly spotty. It’s the mountains. You remember how it was last year.”

  “I don’t remember any problems with cell service last year. And that’s one thing I always pay attention to.”

  Avery rolled her eyes. She clearly remembered Bryan complaining the entire time that he could barely get a signal, even when she had full bars of service. But he was annoyed with her right now, and it wasn’t the time to argue. They’d both been under so much stress lately with the wedding planning and his job that she’d been trying to practice letting things like this go.

  “I’m sorry you couldn’t get any sleep. I promise you if I die, you’ll be the first person to know.”

  “Not funny.” Bryan let out a displeased grunt. “I’m worried about you because I love you, you know. I’m allowed to get concerned when my fiancée goes missing in action. You’re important to me. What do you have on the books for today?”

  “Meeting with the caterer around lunch. And then, um, just going through the grounds with the owner of the Serendipity. And hopefully looking for some of the wedding furnishings.”

  She felt bad stretching the truth. But Bryan didn’t need to stress about this yet. And if anything, she’d learned early in their relationship that sometimes the best way to handle him was with those little white lies of omission. God knew she’d had years of practice with that.

  “Sounds exciting.” Bryan sounded like he was stretching. “I have to get going and get some climbing in before work.”

  “Okay, have fun. Love you.” She could practically see him chalking his hands. He’d set up a climbing wall in their basement to get his “daily dose” of climb
ing in. His ritual included an hour before work and an hour after work to unwind. When they’d first moved in together, Avery hadn’t loved his routine, but now she sometimes joined him if he was okay with company. Climbing the same routes on an eight-foot-high wall was less than challenging, and she didn’t know why he enjoyed it, but at least they got to spend that time together.

  “Love you, too. And don’t forget to check in. Oh, by the way. Did you get the message about my mom? She was really concerned about the menu I sent her to look over. Make sure the caterer is giving you some decent gluten-free options.”

  Caterer. Avery scrunched her nose. Something she didn’t feel like dealing with. “I will.”

  They said their goodbyes, and Avery clicked off the phone call, feeling more jittery than she had before. Bryan’s stress levels were getting to her. He’d wanted a small elopement at the courthouse months ago, and she was the one who had insisted they do something big there at the lodge. Would he want to cancel everything when he found out just how badly plans were going?

  The bells rang on the bakery door behind her, and she turned to see Dan carrying a few paper bags and to-go coffee dispenser in his other hand. “Ready?”

  “Wow, that fast?” How could Jen have made everything to order so quickly? Bryan’s voice rang in her ear: microwave.

  “Yeah, Jen had extras from the catering order for the film crew, so she set us up with some good stuff.”

  Oh. Avery instantly felt bad for her snap judgment. Jen had been nothing but nice. Why did her brain go to such negative thoughts so quickly these days? “One second. Let me go thank her,” Avery said, then pushed past him to go back into the bakery.

  Jen looked up from behind the counter, then smiled. “Forget something?”

  “No, no. I just wanted to say thanks. And it was nice to meet you.”

  “Can I ask you a question?” Jen set her hands on the counter, leaning forward on her elbows.

  Somehow, it felt as if the space between Avery’s heart and ribs constricted painfully. Would Jen tell her to stay away from Dan? “Sure.”

  “Why Brandywood? I mean, when I got married, my husband took me on this incredible honeymoon—and there’s so much out there. I’m just curious why this would be where you’d have your wedding, especially with the place like it is.”